Ducks and cover: Oregon defense faces explosive Beaver receivers

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EUGENE, OR - A week after going against that tough physical Stanford offense, the Oregon defense will be facing one of the better passing offenses in the Pac-12. Oregon State averages 303.4 passing yards per game which is third in the conference.

"They have an explosive offense," said senior linebacker Michael Clay." We have to stop them from getting going."

The Beavers have two significant outside threats in sophomore Brandin Cooks (103.9 ypg) and senior Markus Wheaton (98.6 ypg) who rank second and fourth in receiving yards per game.

"They really try to get the ball down the field," said defensive coordinator Nick Aliotti. "They have other receivers too, but these two guys are something special. I'm impressed."

Those two guys remind head coach Chip Kelly of a wide receiver at USC.

"You've got to make sure to wrap up and tackle them," said Kelly. "They're similar to Marqise Lee in that aspect in that it's not a catch and that's what you get. It's a catch and then they can turn six into sixty real quick.'

"They have two explosive receivers," said Clay. "We've got to stop them."

While the loss to Stanford significantly hurt Oregon's chances to make the BCS National Championship game, there's still a lot on the line for the Ducks against the Beavers in the Civil War, including possibly making the Pac-12 Championship game should Stanford lose to UCLA.